Friday, January 16, 2009

Take a close look at these earrings I made. Don't they remind you of steampunk? I work with a lot of scientific instruments. The earrings were made from old washers from an outmoded piece of equipment I was dismantling for disposal. It seemed such a shame to see unwanted material especially metal go to waste and clog our landfills. So instead of tossing the washers which cannot be recycled into any other equipment, I cleaned them, added some jump rings and put them together for this fun and funky pair!

If you've never really poked around a hardware store, I highly recommend it. There are all sorts of potential jewelry findings you could use. Alas, I am not the first to think of it as Nicole Noelle Sherman has already published this book Making Designer Jewelry from Hardware, Gems, and Beads on the subject! The jewelry is on the chunky side but then many people like their jewelry big and unusual. One benefit of hardware jewelry is the metal is often stainless steel or aluminium which is not susceptible to rusting or discoloration.

The book also shows you how effective it is to make recycled circuit board jewelry for high tech adornment. But a word of caution, these boards have lead solder so if you are hacking up boards, work in a ventilated environment.

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You could say Pearl was born to be a jewelry designer with a name like that! She is the author of The Beading Gem's Journal now simply called The Beading Gem, a popular jewelry making, inspirational and how-to website. Subscribe for your daily dose of tips and tutorials and more

Pearl, these earrings are cool!I made a knotted necklace and earring set for my mother two years ago using satin cord, wooden beads and brass washers and screw nuts. And she loves it and wears it very often, even when going out for dinner etc. Many people asked about these gold toned "beads" and the surprise when told the truth is priceless. I have some washers and nuts in store and have to think about designs with them. Thanks for inspiration!